Formula 1 Verstappen as Mercedes’ dream solution: decision in the summer
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff prefers Max Verstappen as Hamilton’s successor. photo
© Asanka Brendon Ratnayake/AP/dpa
Verstappen is Mercedes’ first choice to replace Hamilton. The Formula 1 champion’s contract situation with Red Bull is actually clear. A decision could come in the summer.
Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff has confirmed Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen (26) as the ideal solution to succeed Lewis Hamilton (39). The Austrian was asked in an interview with Fox Sports Australia whether the Dutch Red Bull driver would be his first choice. “Yes, you can see what his performance level is. But I wouldn’t want to rule out the others either,” said Wolff.
The other candidates are Fernando Alonso (42/Aston Martin), Carlos Sainz (29/Ferrari) and young driver Kimi Antonelli. The 17-year-old Italian is part of the Mercedes youth program and is currently contesting his first season in Formula 2.
A teenager could become one of the “greats.”
“We have a young man who is very promising. I don’t want to put any extra pressure on him, but it looks like he could become one of the greats,” Wolff said of Antonelli. But you don’t want to throw the teenager into the deep end so quickly.
Mercedes is looking for a successor to record world champion Hamilton, who will move to Ferrari after this season and take Sainz’s place there. The Spaniard won the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne last weekend, just two weeks after an appendectomy. The second driver for the Silver Arrows is Hamilton’s English compatriot George Russell.
Mercedes wants to make up for Verstappen
A power struggle at Red Bull could lead to Verstappen leaving the world champion racing team Red Bull early. His contract actually runs until the end of 2028, but he is said to have an exit clause. “There are a few options that are really interesting for us, from very young super talents to some older ones who are very experienced,” explained Wolff.
The Mercedes team boss has repeatedly described it as a failure not to have signed Verstappen as a teenager. The Dutchman moved to Red Bull’s youth team. “It’s a type of relationship that has to happen at a certain time, but we don’t know when,” said Wolff.
A new star is not a panacea
A decision on the second driver will probably be made “in the summer”. “It won’t happen in the next few weeks or months, I want to continue to monitor the market,” explained Wolff.
In the third year since the aerodynamics revolution, Mercedes has also missed the mark at the top. Most recently in Melbourne, both drivers even dropped out, it was the first time since the race in Austria in 2018. But the team had to solve the performance problem, warned Wolff, and a new, great driver couldn’t be a “panacea”.
dpa
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